Arena Breakout Infinite Season 4 brings a new map and a transformative snow mode to the gorgeous, free-to-play extraction FPS

Morefun Studios is making some big changes for Arena Breakout: Infinite Season 4, as it looks to build on its post-launch success. With regular highs of 25,000 active players and an average Steam rating sitting at 80% positive, the free-to-play shooter has established itself as a strong alternative to the platform's more well-known FPS games. Whether you're already a die-hard fan of tactical realism in games like Escape From Tarkov, or have taken your first steps into extraction games with Arc Raiders and want to try more in the genre, the new Arena Breakout: Infinite update is looking to be worth your time.

Season 4 of Arena Breakout: Infinite is titled 'Airport Hunt,' so it's no real surprise that the biggest highlight comes in the form of new map Guoyapos Airport. This former logistics hub was commandeered as a wartime command center, before later being abandoned, making it a prime spot to grab some worthwhile loot. There's much more than that in here, however, from a snow-covered variant of Northridge to the new Encrypted Files mechanic, a bunch of additional weapons and tactical items, and some welcome quality-of-life changes.

The Guoyapos Airport is centered around a control tower, which is certain to be the hot zone due to its prime location and the fact it'll play home to "a treasure trove of valuable supplies." With multiple points of entry and exit, you'll need to watch every corner, while some of the upper-floor rooms are locked down by keys. There's even word of a secret passage. If you'd rather take a more cautious approach, the central ring around the control tower is surrounded by roads, and then by scattered warehouses and other buildings that are likely to be less populated, allowing for more low-risk looting.

Back in the familiar neighborhood of Northridge, snowfall changes how you play. Walking across the fresh-fallen white stuff will leave footprints that last for up to five minutes, making it easy to track the movements of players in your vicinity. You'll need the help, however; general visibility is lower and howling mountain winds make hearing messages and other audio cues harder. The central lakes have also frozen over and you can walk across them, opening new paths.

Encrypted Files are a special stock of high-value supplies that have pre-war transmitters attached. You'll find clues to their whereabouts in the Dark Zone, and if one isn't collected within ten minutes of appearing, its precise location will be publicly broadcast. This alert will also happen if you collect the file, with a single ping sent out upon pickup and another 30 seconds later - you don't have to stay on the run forever, but expect trouble to head your way.

Season four also introduces two new event modes. The first is 'Gold Bounty Assault,' which will take place on a section of the TV Station map, and includes a secret gold bounty airdrop along with three encrypted safes and a number of premium containers. The second is 'Melee-Only Combat,' which works exactly the way it sounds and takes place in an adapted version of the Northridge hotel. You have to go in solo, and all players will be given the same equipment when the round starts.

Among the other changes for Season 4 is an increase in the server tick rate to 72, which should make combat feel smoother and more responsive across the board. Your location on the map now shows dynamic effects to reflect your current status, while markers you place have been made more prominent than those put down by teammates. There's a new export option for settings that lets you grab a code to share your setup across multiple devices, along with other inclusions such as post-processing presets and a display to monitor VRAM usage.

On the weapon side of things, there's the AMB7 assault rifle, which comes with improved noise suppression; the T191 assault rifle, a more advanced iteration of the T951, and its sibling the U191 marksman rifle. There's also a multiburst flashbang grenade that delivers blinding flashes with each detonation.

Rounding things out is the new collection room, which will be unlocked immediately as part of the trophy room. You're able to store any reds (ABI's highest-value loot) you collect there, and can inspect them or take them out whenever you want. Morefun says it's the first step "to make the trophy room feel more personal, not just [for] function." Lead game designer Bryan Li also teases that the team has some "huge, challenging content" planned for 2026, but says that we'll have to hold on a little longer to learn about it: "We hope it's worth waiting for."

Arena Breakout: Infinite Season 4 begins Thursday January 8, and you can play for free on Steam. If you log in between January 8-10, you'll get one million Koen as a special bonus, while daily missions and limited-time events offer up to eight weapon skins and ten themed charms. More cosmetics and outfits can be found in challenge missions and the battle pass.